Chapter 16
With Captain America's command, the six on his side began walking forward.
This represented their unshakable determination.
In response, Peter and the others, under Iron Man's lead, also slowly walked forward.
Both sides gradually went from walking to running, and finally to sprinting!
In the end, the two teams collided.
Peter was immediately targeted by Ant-Man.
"Hey, you're the spider, right? I'm the ant. Don't we have some kind of kinship?" Ant-Man said while swinging a whip-like kick at Peter.
Peter blocked with his hand and, in return, slammed Ant-Man to the ground. "Although we're both arthropods, we're quite different, so I don't think we're related, Mr. Ant."
"You saying that really hurts my feelings," Ant-Man said, shrinking with a *whoosh* just as he was about to hit the ground.
Peter's naked eye struggled to track him, but his spider-sense could vaguely detect Ant-Man's presence.
"Little punk!" Ant-Man launched a sneak attack from behind, shouting loudly to try to scare Peter just as he was about to strike.
However, Peter suddenly spun around and shot out a web.
"What the—?" Ant-Man was shocked. He couldn't figure out how Peter had tracked him multiple times.
Did his suit have thermal imaging or something like Iron Man's and Falcon's gear?
*Splatter!*
Ant-Man was stuck to the ground by the web.
He quickly enlarged himself, breaking free from the web's restraint.
But by then, Peter had already left the spot.
Because on the other side, Winter Soldier had targeted Black Widow. Although Black Widow had enhanced genes from a serum, she lacked tools to counter Winter Soldier's metal arm and could only dodge left and right, using her agility to evade his attacks.
"Hey, we meet again!" Peter, taking advantage of Winter Soldier throwing a punch, used his webbing to stick to his metal arm and swung over him.
"You again, kid!" Winter Soldier swung his arm forcefully, trying to pull Peter down with the webbing.
At that moment, Black Widow seized the opportunity, closing in on Winter Soldier and using a Brazilian jiu-jitsu-inspired chokehold to slam him to the ground.
"That move's so cool. Can you teach me?" Peter landed nearby, continuously firing webbing to pin Winter Soldier to the ground.
"Sure, when the mission's over, I can teach you some fighting techniques if there's a chance," Black Widow readily agreed.
*Whoosh, whoosh—*
Two arrows shot from nearby, precisely cutting through the webbing.
Seeing this, Winter Soldier immediately flipped up.
It was Hawkeye, who had noticed the situation and come to help!
Hawkeye looked at Peter with a hint of hostility. "Kid, you're just a little brat."
"Uh…" Peter's expression froze. "I'm already a man!"
"Your voice sounds like a little girl's!" Hawkeye shot another arrow and charged at Peter alongside Winter Soldier.
*Boom!*
At that moment, Black Panther's swift figure appeared, tackling Winter Soldier and crashing away.
The two engaged in close-quarters combat on the ground.
Peter grabbed Hawkeye's arrow, about to speak, when his spider-sense suddenly went wild.
Danger!
He quickly tossed the arrow aside.
But it was too late.
*Boom!*
The arrowhead exploded.
Peter felt his head buzzing.
Fortunately, Hawkeye had some sense and didn't load the explosive arrow with too much power, so the damage wasn't significant—otherwise, he wouldn't have aimed it at a person.
Black Widow glanced at Peter, then at Hawkeye, slightly angry. "Clint, are you trying to blow him up?"
Hawkeye was a bit embarrassed. He had only meant to use the explosive arrow's shockwave from a distance to teach Peter a small lesson.
Who knew Peter could catch his arrow barehanded at such close range and even hold it near his face to show off?
Hawkeye didn't know how to explain the blunder.
Black Widow glanced at Peter again, saw he was fine, and charged at Hawkeye.
Peter patted his head, the buzzing in his mind subsiding a bit.
He felt he'd suffered from a lack of combat experience.
This incident taught him a lesson.
Although he had spider-sense, and after merging with Shadow Spider-Man, his spider-sense had been enhanced, no longer as unreliable as before, it still had limitations.
For now, it could only detect dangers directed at him, not potential dangers that hadn't yet been triggered.
For example, Hawkeye's explosive arrow was just an arrow until it was activated.
Only when it detonated did it become a bomb.
This time, since everyone was on the same side, Hawkeye hadn't gone all out.
Next time, if an enemy did this, it'd be dangerous!
After recovering, Peter found himself temporarily free.
He took the chance to observe the battlefield.
In the sky, Vision and Wanda were clashing, their magic dazzling, with bursts of explosions, but anyone could tell they weren't using their full strength.
Falcon and War Machine were circling and fighting in the air.
On the ground, Iron Man had given up his ranged advantage, engaging Captain America in close-quarters combat with his armor, perhaps still trying to convince him.
Nearby, Black Panther and Winter Soldier were locked in fierce combat.
Unlike Peter, who relied on agility as his main fighting style, Black Panther and Winter Soldier were masters of close combat, evenly matched, their fists hitting like iron.
Black Widow and Hawkeye were also trading blows back and forth.
Overall, it seemed Iron Man's side had the upper hand.
Huh, where's Ant-Man?
Peter looked around but couldn't find "his kindred" anywhere.
His instincts told him this shrinking guy was definitely hiding somewhere, plotting something, just like when he tried to steal his shield earlier!
As Peter searched for Ant-Man, the battlefield's situation suddenly shifted.
It was Wanda!
She had noticed her side was at a disadvantage.
So, she suddenly increased her magical output, blasting Vision away, then first knocked Iron Man, who was fighting Captain America, flying with a single move, and then used a magical whip to bind Black Widow's hands, flinging her away.
Next, she turned her sights on Black Panther, enveloping him in a massive burst of magic and smashing him into a container dozens of meters away.
Wanda's outburst stunned everyone on the field.
When everyone was "playing," someone suddenly got a bit serious, and she stood out starkly.
Wanda floated in the air, looking down at everyone, her body surrounded by red magical energy, and said coldly, "No need to keep tangling with them. We have our own business."
"You're right. We should go do what we came for," Captain America nodded.
"I'm afraid it won't be that easy!" Iron Man quickly flew back, but as he tried to fire his palm repulsors, he found them malfunctioning.